Towards better scanning near‐field optical microscopy probes — progress and new developments

Several approaches are described with the aim of producing near‐field optical probes with improved properties. Focused ion beam milling allows the fabrication of small apertures in a controlled fashion, resulting in probes with excellent polarization properties and increased transmission. Microfabrication processes are described that allow the production of apertures of 30–50 nm, facilitating the mass‐fabrication of apertured tip structures that can be used in a combined force/near‐field optical microscope. Finally, possible future developments are outlined.